BACKYARD PEN IDEAS FOR NON-LIVESTOCK BACKYARDS!
So your child comes home and wants to raise a market project. You happen to live in a neighborhood with a nice backyard that is clearly NOT designed for housing livestock…so what do you do? “No” does not need to be the first answer!
First, ask what options and places are available to house your project. Is there a club or school barn, or a friend who wants to share their pen? If you don’t have any of these options, you may need to create a pen in your backyard. With the backyard option, always check with your city or county ordinances and your neighbors. Most cities & counties unofficially tolerate 3-4 months of housing of smaller livestock (pigs, sheep, goats, turkeys, chickens) for 4H, FFA & Grange fair projects, but will demand the relocation of livestock if your neighbors object and complain about the noise or smells.
To avoid neighborhood complaints, clean daily and feed on a regular schedule. Also, try to place the pen in an area that least effects the neighbors.
The Dog Eared Backyard Fence Pen
This is a great style for the non-livestock backyard. When I walked into this well-manicured backyard, I did not immediately see where the pen was setup until I saw four little goat noses through the fence panels! The fence height blended with the other fences and it was tall enough to keep little goats in. The lines are good and clean and it didn’t take away from the beautiful backyard. Another variation to this design could have been to add a welded wire panel on the bottom half to give more visibility to see the goats. Inside they built a shelter with a goat lounging shelf. In the off season, the area is used for yard storage.
If you want to use this style for pigs, I’d add welded wire or additional 2×4’s at the bottom 3′ to keep them from pushing through.
The 2x4 Swine Pen
This pen was built using the corner of the yard with 2×4 rails attached to 4×4 posts. The 2×4 rails were placed on all sides to protect the existing fence line. This pen was used for 2 years before the family moved to another home. It proved to be strong and sturdy and kept the pigs safe and covered. This was a good example of creating a suitable pen to fit the needs of the family! It was Cost effective and practical. This style could be used for goats and sheep, but would require more height to keep them in.
Note: This family had issues with coughing pigs. We bedded this pen completely with straw to reduce the dust. The coughs improved and the combination of screening & bedding kept the pigs protected and healthy.
The Shaded Swine Pen
This double swine pen was setup on a concrete patio with a 5″ thick layer of bedding pellets. This family used fence boards lined with painted plywood and a plywood roof. The fence boards gave ample height for the kids to walk in to clean and tend to the pigs. They also setup heat lamps and fans to ensure complete comfort. The position of this pen made it easy to check up and view the pigs from the house. This setup was in a very nice yard in an upscale neighborhood. This family was able to support their child while maintaining their beautiful yard! A Win-Win for everyone! The panels were bolted together for easy disassembly in the off season. They were able to use this setup for several years.
The Shaded Swine Club Pen
This club pen was setup using 16’ galvanized panels, 4′ access gates, ½ x 12” kick boards to keep the shavings in place, and modified wood storage sheds for housing and shade cloth.
Each pen had smaller feed pens to ensure each pig was eating separately (see the black iron panels). They bedded the pen with thick shavings to manage the dust. The wood sheds had doggie door access with pvc refrigeration panels to keep drafts out. The kids hung weighted cans as an idea to create a play toy for the pigs to develop their neck. Unfortunately, the pigs lost interest after a day or two… but always encourage the kids to keep trying to find new ways to make things better!
For more information on setting up pens, see the Barn category for these articles!
Daily Pen Assessment – Goats & Sheep – This is a “must do” for every project showman!
Daily Pen Assessment – Swine
If you have a pen setup you would like to share, please email it to us! We are always looking for great ideas to make fair projects run smooth and successful!